Coronavirus: Five more people diagnosed in NI

A nurse in protective clothing
Image caption Three new cases were confirmed on Saturday and five more on Sunday

Five more cases of coronavirus have been confirmed in Northern Ireland.

It brings the total number of people in Northern Ireland with the virus to 12 since testing began. 

Health officials are tracing people who may have been in contact with the latest cases.

Meanwhile, two more cases have been confirmed in the Republic of Ireland, bringing the total number there to 21. One of the patients has an underlying condition and is seriously ill.

Health officials said both cases were community transmissions and did not involve people who had returned recently from at-risk areas.

Three new cases were confirmed in Northern Ireland on Saturday and five more on Sunday.

Saturday's cases were adults who had recently travelled from Italy, which is at the centre of the European outbreak, and were linked to a previous case.

Details about Sunday's cases have not yet been released.

On Sunday night, it was announced a man in his 60s had become the third person in the UK to die after testing positive for coronavirus.

Football fixtures

A number of amateur football teams in Northern Ireland have postponed matches and cancelled training after a player was among those to test positive for coronavirus.

The player represents Portadown-based team Hanover FC, and the other clubs affected are Coagh United in County Tyrone and Glenavy-based Crewe United in County Antrim.

Other weekend developments include:

The first case of coronavirus in Northern Ireland was confirmed on 27 February and was an adult who had travelled from northern Italy via Dublin.

Two more cases were confirmed on 4 March, one of whom was a postgraduate student at Queen's University in Belfast who had recently returned from northern Italy.

The other adult had been in contact with someone in the UK who had tested positive.

The fourth case, announced on Friday, is an adult who had recently returned from Italy - their diagnosis had been linked to a previous case.

For advice and the latest updates on the coronavirus outbreak, the Public Health Agency has a dedicated website.